


Dog Tags

by lindsaylaurie



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, M/M, Mentioned Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-14
Updated: 2014-03-14
Packaged: 2018-01-15 17:02:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1312498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lindsaylaurie/pseuds/lindsaylaurie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Remus comes across an artefact from his youth.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dog Tags

**Author's Note:**

> This one's from last year, another tumblr repost.

Sometime in the sixth year, they made dog tags for Padfoot.

Remus thought it was practical. Though Sirius usually had a good handle on what he did as a dog, there were times when a bird or a rabbit would spark his interest and he’d go running off, leaving the others to chase after him. Though Sirius insisted that they had never lost him once, and never would, Remus went ahead and did it anyway.

                That summer Padfoot and his human counterpart sported a spike collar with a bone shaped dog tag dangling from it. Sirius said it looked cool, like a punk or something. Peter agreed. James said he looked like a berk. Remus agreed. He stopped wearing the collar full time after they graduated, but they still kept it for Padfoot.

                A month after Sirius went to Azkaban, Remus found the leather collar in the back of his sock drawer. He didn’t know what to do with it. He should have thrown it away, just like every other reminder of Sirius, but he just couldn’t bear to. So he moved it. Moved it time and time again until he’d forgotten where he’d put it.

                And then they were together again and nothing else mattered.

                Now Sirius is gone for good and it hurts to breathe. Remus doesn’t know what to do with himself. He tries to remember how he lived without Sirius for thirteen years, but he can’t. So he decides to pack.

                His room in Grimmauld Place isn’t anything special. Though his clothes are neatly folded away in drawers and closets, boxes from his old flat still line the far wall. He’s forgotten what was in most of those boxes. Tea sets, plates, towels, memories, things he didn’t really need at Grimmuald Place. But now that Sirius is gone he can’t stay here any longer and he needs whatever those boxes contain.

                It might be easier not to open them. He could just take the boxes intact and open them wherever he ends up. But at that moment he feels like being irrational.

                Which is why he goes for a box at the bottom first. He knows what’s in there. Everything that ever mattered sits in a cardboard box. He knows he shouldn’t, that opening his wounds wouldn’t help anyone, but he doesn’t care. He tries to rationalize it, he tells himself he’s allowed a moment of irrationality after what’s happened.

                Trembling fingers slide along the edges until he finds the start of the tape. It peels back slowly, taking some bits of cardboard with it. The box pops open and all the memories leak out. Pictures, letters, James’ broken glasses, Peter’s scarf and, hiding just under a photo album, is Sirius’ collar.

                Remus runs his thumb over the faded engraving and closes his eyes. He can see Sirius wearing the stupid thing and grinning. It cuts him like a knife.

                He sighs and opens his eyes. Very carefully, he slips the tag from the old leather. The collar goes back into the box. The tag goes into his pocket.

                And as he straightens up and brushes the damp from his eyes, he remembers how to live without Sirius. 

 


End file.
